First Things First
MATTHEW 6:33
Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
One day, a man who had two cows told his wife they should sell them. He and his wife could keep the money from one cow, and they could give the money from the other cow to God. But the next day, the man walked into his house looking sad. “What’s wrong?” his wife asked. The man thought for a minute and then replied, “God’s cow just died.” When you seek first your own dreams, your desires, your plans, your programs, your agenda… God’s cow is always the one that dies. He always gets what’s left over. The first thing to suffer is time with Him, obedience to Him, or commitment to His plans. And yet at the same time, you may still pray, “Dear God, bless my rule, my reign, my plan.” Yet God is not going to bless any plan but His. The secret to living out the fullness of your destiny is found in one word: “first.” It represents your highest priority—to advance the rule of God and His kingdom in every area of your life. We read this word in Matthew 6:33: “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
There is a hierarchy in God’s kingdom, and He is always first. You can listen to a million sermons, read a million books, and pray a million prayers over a million years, but none of those things will empower you to live out your destiny until you put God first. God must be first. In baseball, if you miss first base, it doesn’t matter whatever else you do after that. If you miss first base but go on to touch second base, third base, and home plate—and even if everyone congratulates you when you get there—you are still out. If you miss what is first, it doesn’t matter what else you do. Change one thing in your life, and you will get to watch that one thing change everything else. From this point forward, put God first in all of your life. Not because it is His request, but because it is His demand. God promises that when you do, “all these things will be added to you.” You will experience the fullness and maximum potential of who you are along with the blessings He has in store for you as you enter into what He has ordained you to be.
Great God and King, I put You first in my heart, my mind, my schedule, and all that I do. I make this commitment to You today to go to You first in the decisions I make, to read Your Word, and to seek Your wisdom. Thank You for that which You have promised me when I make You first in my life.
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